`Opportunity to rebuild peace process still exists' - Adams

In a newspaper article, Sinn Fein President
Gerry Adams today outlined Sinn Fein's position on
the peace process and the shape of an agreed
political settlement.

Full text of article:

It remains my firm view that an opportunity to
rebuild the peace process and secure a
permanent peace still exists. In seeking to
break through the current impasse and to move
the situation forward I would like to set out
clearly Sinn Fein's view of the issues, which
we believe are central to the creation of a
credible and meaningful process of
negotiations.

I think that it is also important, in the
interests of clarity, that I set out clearly
Sinn Fein's view of how these issues can be
resolved and the approach which Sinn Fein will
take on entering inclusive and credible peace
negotiations.

Sinn Fein wants to see an end to all armed
actions and our party is committed to work for
an end to conflict regardless of the
difficulties involved. Our peace strategy and
our commitment to peaceful and democratic
methods is the cornerstone of our party policy.

Sinn Fein is committed to inclusive democratic
negotiations. These will best be conducted in a
wholly peaceful environment. But even if there
was such an environment at this time, no one
knows when Sinn Fein will be admitted into
substantive talks. The British government has
retained a veto over our entry into substantive
negotiations and neither myself, John Hume nor
the Irish Government has so far been able to
elicit a direct answer from London.

When a meaningful and inclusive process of
negotiations is genuinely being offered we
could, with credibility, seek to persuade the
IRA to restore the cessation of August 1994. In
our view, this is the only effective way to
proceed.

With this objective in mind Sinn Fein has
identified, both publicly and privately, a
number of key issues which we feel need to be
dealt with, adequately and unambiguously, if we
are to make a credible argument that an
inclusive and meaningful process of
negotiations is on offer.

The issues are:

The removal of preconditions
to, and in, negotiations.

The issue of a
timeframe for the negotiations.

Confidence-building measures on the part of the
British government.

Sinn Fein entry into
dialogue.

1. The removal of preconditions to, and in,
negotiations
Given that preconditions to
negotiations caused the collapse of the peace
process last February, it is clear that, if the
peace process is to be rebuilt, then
preconditions need to be removed. In
particular, given its destructive effect, the
decommissioning precondition needs to be
removed and in a way which prevents the
erection of this obstacle again at some point
in the future.

The removal of the gun from the political
equation in Ireland is a clear objective of a
lasting peace settlement.

Given the importance of this objective, the
approach should be one which is most likely to
succeed, rather than one which blocks and
disrupts the wider negotiations which are based
on the principle that nothing is agreed until
everything is agreed. The issue of disarmament
needs to be resolved but without blocking the
negotiations.

Sinn Fein has already stated its willingness to
address all aspects of the Report of the
International Body in the context of our
participation in inclusive negotiations.

Sinn Fein is prepared to consider any proposals
which address the need to take all the guns out
of Irish politics and we will be putting
forward, for consideration, our proposals on
this issue.

2. The issue of a timeframe for the
negotiations

The need for a timeframe to
generate and sustain momentum in the
negotiations is obvious. A realistic,
indicative timeframe is the only way to create
the necessary urgency and momentum towards
agreement. The two governments clearly need to
take a lead on this crucial issue, a point
which our party has made consistently over the
past two years.

The two governments should, therefore, agree
themselves and then propose to the participants
a concentrated timeframe. The alternative, as
we have seen since June 10th, is endless
stalling, obstruction and stalemate.

3. Confidence-building measures

Sinn Fein
believes that an unequivocal restoration of the
IRA cessation would represent the most
important confidence-building initiative on the
IRA's part.

For its part, and as part of an initiative to
rebuild the peace process, the British
government should outline, clearly and in
detail, the substance of a programmatic
approach on issues which will generate
confidence. Sinn Fein endorses the suggestions
on confidence building made by the
International Body in Chapter VII of its
report. The British government, as the
International Body pointed out, needs to take
action on prisoners, emergency legislation,
policing and on social and economic issues.

In particular, issues of equality which are
democratic or human rights matters do not
require any negotiation. The British government
could and should act on these issues
immediately if it wishes to demonstrate a real
interest in building confidence in its approach
to the search for a lasting peace.

The issues which should, in my view, be
addressed as part of a programme of
confidence-building measures are:

Those
issues which fall into the equality and
democratic rights agenda and which address
political, economic, social and cultural
discrimination. These issues can and should be
addressed immediately.

The principles of equality of treatment,
equality of opportunity and parity of esteem
should apply across the political, cultural,
economic, social, legal and security spectrum.
These include:

Equality of opportunity in employment;

Equality of treatment for the Irish culture and
identity;

Equality of treatment of elected
representatives;

Equality in the provision of education,
specifically through the medium of Irish;

Equality of treatment in economic development.

Both governments also need urgently to
address a demilitarisation agenda dealing with
issues such as political prisoners; emergency
legislation; and policing.

Sinn Fein's entry into negotiations

Sinn
Fein will approach the negotiations on the sole
basis of our democratic mandate. We are totally
committed to peaceful and democratic means of
resolving political problems and we will
endeavour to build confidence in the search for
agreement through our unremitting efforts to
promote dialogue.

Sinn Fein's efforts to rebuild the peace
process thus far have been on the basis of the
position of the two governments, as outlined in
the Joint Communiqué of February 28th 1996,
that Sinn Fein's ``participation in negotiations
requires the restoration of the ceasefire of
August 1994''.

Sinn Fein has the democratic right to be
involved in negotiations and to represent our
electorate on the basis of our established
electoral mandate. We reject any preconditions
to our involvement in dialogue and
negotiations. But we accept that inclusive
democratic negotiations will best be conducted
in a wholly peaceful environment.

Sinn Fein believes, therefore, that any
restoration by the IRA of its cessation of
August 1994 will be genuinely unequivocal,
containing a clear and unambiguous commitment
to enhance a genuine peace process.

Sinn Fein has already publicly made clear its
commitment to the Mitchell Principles and we
will do so formally when we enter negotiations.
Sinn Fein can only speak for itself and on
behalf of its electorate. Sinn Fein is not the
IRA. But we recognise and acknowledge the IRA's
stated intention of enhancing the democratic
peace process and the IRA's definitive
commitment to its success.

Sinn Fein is wholly committed to democratic
negotiations and to a democratic outcome of
those negotiations.

Equality of treatment is an essential
ingredient of any process of democratic
negotiations. Sinn Fein wholly endorses an
approach where all parties are subject to the
same rules and procedures in the negotiations.
It is self-evident that threats of any
description from any quarter have no role to
play in such a process of democratic
negotiations.

I firmly believe that if clear assurances are
given by the British government that a
negotiations process which is both viable and
credible will be put in place, then the peace
process can be restored and that the
opportunity finally to resolve the conflict can
then be brought to a successful conclusion.

The need to address these issues should not be
put off until after the British general
election. Sinn Fein has attempted to clarify
its position on the issues of concern to the
British government and in a way which allows
space for the British to respond positively.

If the British government is serious about
peace in Ireland, if John Major is honestly
offering to deal with the outstanding issues of
concern, then electoral considerations should
be set aside and this should be done without
further delay.